ICICI Bank HiSAVE 5.40% AER

Moorepart

MarkyMarkD wrote:

Don't you mean BCCI?

Sorry I meant BCCI

gavcooper

I've opened an account your money is 100% safe upto £2k, from 2 to 30 something you get 90% back. Its a very good rate, so got to give it a go. Think I will put £2k for the first few months just to see how things plan out.

Former_MSE_Dan

Just to confirm what isasmurf posted above is correct, the "unable to hold clients money" comment in their FSA profile refers to insurance money and, I have been assured by the FSA, doesnt affect deposits in savings accounts at all.

The Instant access savings article has been updated in the light of this launch and the withdrawl of A&L online saver for new customers

MiserlyMartin

The ICICI AER rate of 5.40% is equivalent to 5.27% gross. (according to ICICI) Something to remember when comparing accounts?

I understand what AER is but I am somewhat confused. For example when nationwide quote their rates, they show them as Gross/AER. eg... E-savings at 5% Gross/AER. How can gross and AER rates be the same? I suspect that this is the gross rate not the AER can anyone confirm?

jimclark1967

It's because AER (Annual Equivalent Rate) is what you would get if the interest was paid annually. So if a provider quotes the AER as being equal to the gross rate it just means the interest is paid annually.

For accounts that pay interest monthly (as is the case with ICICI) the AER will be slightly higher than the gross due to the effect of compounding the interest (i.e. interest on the interest.)

When comparing accounts it's the AER you need to look for - if two accounts have the same AER then you'll end up with the same amount of interest no matter how frequently it's paid.

JC

MSE_Martin

Just a note

Jim's quite right above - yet there is one complication in the AER/Gross comparison. If there's a bonus rate on the account then this has to be incorporated into the AER. So if you've a 6 month bonus rate then the rate drops, the AER can actually give you a rate thats a hybrid of the two.

There's a link from my savings article that explains this.

martin

jimclark1967

Good point Martin - I'd forgotten about bonus rates.

getting used to being called Jim on MSE forums - I'm actually neither Jim nor born in '67!

JC

deemy2004

The 5.4% is probably very temporary, probably 6 months down the road or less it will be dropped to 5% or there abouts.

Their fix rate bonds are not very competitive i.e. 1year is 4.6% !

Debt_Free_Chick

deemy2004 wrote:

The 5.4% is probably very temporary, probably 6 months down the road or less it will be dropped to 5% or there abouts.

Their fix rate bonds are not very competitive i.e. 1year is 4.6% !

Agree Deemy ... it seems that many, many savings institutions are predicting a fall in interest rates. I've seen suggestions that we'll have two cuts totalling 0.5% this year! (And there's only 6 months to go).

oldagetraveller

I don't know how many have applied for an ICICI savings account and have actually succeeded in opening one but personally I don't rate them with their account opening progress.
I applied 28 May and only after about 10 days of e-mails and a couple of 'phone calls managed to get e-mail confirmation, which should have been sent to me within 24 hours of application, and a requirement to send them an initial cheque, £1 or more. I sent a £5 cheque which appeared in, and was debited from my current account on 12 June, so I know they received it. I have yet to hear anything further. Either this is one big scam/con and I have lost a fiver or they are so pathetically slow and inefficient which would not really inspire much confidence in their abilities for further account use. From previous experience with other financial institutions account opening has been very fast, a week at most from first enquiry.
I'll give them a few more days grace then make a 'phone call to see what's happening.